Sarah French: November 2009 Archives

With the passing of our dear friend and colleague, Alice Morrin, it was brought to my attention her inability to text 911 while she was hiding from her husband and could not afford for him to hear her.Instead, Alice sent a series of text messages to a friend.You may remember my story that aired on FOX 61 back in August.

State Representative Stephen Dargan (D-West Haven) followed through and held a forum on Wednesday, regarding 911 text messaging.He plans to introduce legislation next year to upgrade the state's 911 system to make text messaging available to sent directly to 911 dispatchers.

Marissa Mitrovich said the millions of text messages sent daily by cellphone users are handled equally by carries, so a 911 message could sit for hours before it is delivered.

Peter White said 911 texting will be possible when the emergency dispatch system is upgraded from copper-based land lines to a fiber-optic-based system capable of receiving digital information, such as texting and videos.

According to the Courant - In the meeting, no one was willing to predict how long it may take state and federal agencies to resolve the equipment, security, and technical roadblocks to 911 texting.

According to John Danaher, until then, it's still best to call and talk directly to a dispatcher.But he's not giving up on the idea, here in Connecticut.He believes, down the road, Connecticut could be one of the first states to offer the service.

Currently, Blackhawk County dispatch center, in Waterloo, Iowa, is the only location to have 911 texting in place.

The upgrade is designed for three main reasons: for the hearing impaired, for the younger generation, and for victims who can't afford for someone to hear them.

According to Judy Flores from the BlackHawk County 911 Call Center, the most important thing is to know your location. Call centers are currently working on a way to identify location from the text, since at the moment the operator has to text back, through the computer, and ask for the city or zip code.

For now, only subscribers to i wireless, a local carrier with T-Mobile USA, will be able to use the service.

Still, the company that set up the upgrade, Intrado, is already in talks with other carriers, suggesting that it shouldn't be long before other call centers follow suit.